Skateboarding on a neighbor's driveway seems like a
harmless enough activity for any 10-year-old. But in the early evening
of May 5, 2010, Noah Howard fell from his board and struck his head at a
life-changing angle.

Noah's parents took him to a nearby emergency center after
noticing a bump on the front of his head. It was there that doctors
started to worry, as Noah began to vomit and fought to stay awake.
Hospital staff kept him conscious until arriving at the Children's
Hospital at Scott & White in Temple, Texas. A CT scan was
administered and revealed an arterial bleed and fractured skull. By 9:30
that night, Noah was in neurosurgery and a 3-inch piece of his skull
was removed to access the wound site. Doctors finished surgery at
midnight, much to Noah’s mom’s relief. “We live in a relatively small
town, so to have such expert doctors nearby was a blessing,” she
recounts.

Since then, Noah has made a steady recovery and now wears a
protective helmet when skateboarding. Despite permanent deafness on his
left side and an adjustment period to restore his equilibrium, Noah has
the opportunity to educate others to wear helmets, thanks to McLane,
Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and the Children’s Hospital at
Scott & White. "I don't want anybody else to go through this," he
says. Noah is an avid golf fan and plays golf on his middle school golf
team. He is an inspiration to his family, his friends and every McLane
teammate.